By the Grace of Her Humanity
by Lithia Sunset
Summary: Prompt:pocket-sized fic in which a version of a character would be found, somewhere & somehow not specified. Prompt met, but also revolves around a larger plot of its own. Also an AU Hetalia crossover. AU companion of Twice Charmed; Lucy is the youngest child of Katia Ortega & Severus Snape. What happens when she finds a banished miniature version of somone no one else would help?
1. Mercy

**By the Grace of Her Humanity**

**© 2013 peridotpasasges (And all other aliases and associated legal names)**

**A/N: The prompt was that of a pocket-sized fic, and that a pocket-sized version of a character would be found, somewhere and somehow not specified. This meets that prompt, but also revolves around a larger plot of its own. This is listed as a Harry Potter and Avenger's crossover, however, it also crosses with Hetalia, and is an AU companion fic of Twice Charmed, as Lucy is Katia's youngest biological child. One does not need to be read to read the other. **

* * *

_Ch.1: Mercy_

"You realize if I ever regain my actual size-"

"That you'll murder me with the nearest object or your bare hands? You can barely give me a mosquito bite, so you're going to be a good little toy and not squirm."

Loki scowled as the doll clothes were adjusted on him.

"Hmmm...maybe orange isn't your color after all..."

"I look utterly ridiculous."

"You're right. Now shut up and hold your arms up."

Loki reluctantly lifted his arms, scowling. Standing just made him fall into the crevice her lap created, and that made both of them equally unhappy. Lucy pulled forth another outfit. Loki narrowed his eyes.

"You wouldn't dare."

"I would," the nine and a half year old said loftily. "And post it on any social media sight available. But...how about this?"

Loki tilted his head. "You want me to kill you, don't you?"

"What're you gonna do, prick me with your almost microscopic little dagger? I have no qualms about dressing you in girl clothes. So here's the hoop. Jump."

Three outfits later, she picked him up by his waist and plunked him onto her dressed in front of her mirror.

"No wonder you choose green. It looks good on you," Lucy commented lightly. Loki had to resist the urge to model the outfit.

"Walk to the end of the dresser and back and I promise I won't change your clothes anymore today."

Loki glared poison daggers at her. "Excuse me? How dare you demand-"

"Swagger or sashay or whatever your little tail-hiney up there and back before I let Cloud play with you."

Cloud was her kitten. Loki obliged grudgingly. Lucy giggled.

"What?" He snapped, raising an eyebrow.

"You're so adorable like that...and..." The child covered her face with her hands, peeking out at him and blushing. "And your little bum looks so high in those tight pants. You have a high bum."

And she kept repeating it in a sing-song manner, Loki has a high bum, as if she might win an award. There was a knock at the door, and she plucked him up hurriedly and stowed him in her pocket. Loki was pressed quite suddenly against her purple DS, face and hands being imprinted with the little square designs on it.

"Hi mom," she said. Loki struggled upward to peek over the pocket edge, but his legs and arms in that form were so...lacking...that he merely slid down, tripping over the stylus.

"Are you all right? You've been up here all day."

"Yeah, mom, I'm fine. You know I'm like dad-sometimes I like being alone."

Katia watched her youngest child's face carefully before nodding, once.

"You should eat. If you're not going to have dinner, at least let me bring you something."

"Um...ok. I'll come."

Her hand descended in her pocket, gently touching the top of Loki's head as if to ensure he was still squished up against her electronics.

Once her mother had left, Lucy closed the door and exhaled in relief. Gingerly, she extricated Loki and placed him atop her jewelry box. She stooped down, laying her arms flat and using them to prop her head up by her chin.

"Is this your way of kneeling?" Loki asked, wincing at the slight shrill of his voice.

"Nope," she said carelessly, popping the _'p'_ for emphasis. "I'm deciding your fate."

"Marvelous," he retorted sarcastically.

Loki narrowed his eyes at her.

"Wanna bath?" She asked suddenly.

"You are _not_ giving me a bath," Loki growled indignantly. "I am not a pet!"

"Funny, this looks like captivity to me," Lucy replied honestly. Loki ground his teeth. He really had not developed infinite patience for children.

"Besides," Lucy continued, scrunching her nose, "why would I want to wash your high bum? I was being hospiable."

Loki quirked an eyebrow. _"Hospitable?"_

"That's what I said," she said confusedly. He sighed.

"If that is true, I suppose I would like to bathe," Loki agreed. Lucy plucked him up and slid him into her pocket, humming. He heard doors opening and closing, water running, and rummaging. She did a lot of moving around, and he did a lot of sliding and face-mashing against her DS again. When he was pulled out once more, they were in her room, and a small clear container, an array of doll pajamas, and a hand towel were spread out in front of her on the floor. Lucy stood, placing him by the items on the floor. She set her hands on her hips.

"I'm going to trust you to not mess with anything," she began sternly. Loki merely let one eyebrow raise.

"But you'll close the door?"

"Well...yes. But it's so no one steps on your or anything. I was sure you would want privacy...And Cloud might eat you if I'm not around. So be a good little person while I go eat with my family. I'll bring something back for you, I promise. Oh, and uh..."

She dropped a minuscule cloth, bar of soap, scrub brush, and underwear before him. "I had my brother shrink these. I know you have a fantabulous high bum, but I kinda...-" here she swallowed, winced, and blushed, "-asked my brother to make a few copies of the pair you had on...and shrink some of the boxers he meant to give dad for Christmas for you. I _told_ him your bum wasn't as flat as dad's and that your hips-erm...just try them."

Lucy fled from the room surprisingly quickly without an ounce of her earlier bravado.

Loki eyed the door warily before stripping down and climbing into the shallow container. He wished it wasn't clear, but he was alone, and Lucy didn't seem like the type or age range to want to stare at his naked bum or anything else. There was some sort of men's bath wash in the water, but just a touch, and the soap was a rather gender-neutral scent. He dunked his head, thinking on how he had come into contact with her. He vaguely remembered waking up outside to have her kneeling over him, fending off some animal from eating him, and then she had wiped him off, changed him, and made a tiny bed for him in her miniature house. The bed wasn't some awful plastic contraption he knew some Midgardian female children possessed. It was real furniture, tiny furniture, even if the mattress was fake, with patches that would have gone onto a quilt as blankets. She was considerate, he supposed, and useful. He might not kill her.

He began scrubbing and lathering the soap in his hair, wondering what she might bring him to eat. By the time he had finished and climbed out, she had not yet returned. He used the hand towel to dry himself, picking his way through the clothes she had left. Just as he buttoned a tiny green silk pj top, the door creaked open and Lucy appeared, eyes well above ground level as she closed it behind her. "Are you finished?" She asked, staring straight ahead.

"Yes," Loki replied tersely. Lucy's eyes found him. She fidgeted.

"How did your clothes fit?"

"The outfit is rather nice to be meant for an inanimate object, I must admit."

"Err-what about the _rest_ of your clothes?" She blushed. Loki grinned mischievously. He always loved to play on embarrassment.

"A bit tight, but they'll do."

"It's not my fault you're blessed there," Lucy muttered.

"Excuse me?" Loki inquired. She couldn't mean what he thought.

"Nothing," she responded brightly, kneeling to clean up the scattered remains of his bath time.

"Now you kneel. Better late than never," Loki said smugly.

"Ha-ha," Lucy said sarcastically, "very witty. I'm sure you're proud of yourself. Are you hungry?"

"So eager to serve me," Loki continued in his tone from earlier. Lucy made a face. "In your dreams, pixie-man."

Loki opened his mouth to reply when a nock came at the door for the second time that day. Lucy lunged forward, scooping him up and pushing him unceremoniously into the deepest recesses of her pocket. He was just relieved that the girl had deigned to not shove him in with her DS again. She stowed the container under her bed, rearranging the skirt to cover it, and quickly kicking the towel and clothes into the far corner as she made her way to the door. She cracked it open slightly.

"Yes, Nico?" She narrowed her eyes at her oldest brother. He was staying until he could marry Angela and move out.

"Mam and dad have a date tonight, I'm going out, and Lils is with Vaati again. Aunt Evie will be coming over later, but Cameron and Sebastian will be here. Just didn't want you to freak. Leftovers're in the fridge."

Lucy blinked, and Loki could feel the shift of her clothes around him as she relaxed. "Okay, thanks."

Nico smiled, ruffling her hair before walking down the hallway and out of sight. Lucy closed the door firmly, leaning against it and pulling Loki out. She shimmied her fingers into a supporting position, and opened her hand so he could sit on the edge of her palm.

"That's my oldest brother, Nico."

"Who were-?"

"All of those people he mentioned?" Lucy laughed. "I'm the youngest of five siblings. Nico's name is Nicodemus, Lils is Lilianne. They're twins. They're five years older than my other two brothers, Cameron and Sebastian, who are ten months apart from each other and five years older than me. Vaati is Lil's boyfriend. Mom doesn't approve because he used to be a bad guy, some sort of Wind Mage that terrorized the land he lived in repeatedly, although admittedly he never did anything that bad and had a crappy life. Nico is probably going to go out with his fiancé Angela. She grew up with them. Her parents and mine knew each other for a long time. Our mom and hers are best friends. Aunt Evie is our real aunt and mom's older sister. Fabio is mom's twin brother. Dad doesn't have any family that I know of, or that _he_ knows of, actually. His life was pretty crappy too before he met mom..."

Lucy's eyes focused on the minuscule man in her hand. He almost seemed to have been listening attentively.

"You didn't hear a thing I said, did you?"

Loki cocked his head. "Thrilling though it wasn't, I know exactly what you babbled."

Lucy blushed. "Well, you did _ask_..."

She turned the lock on her door and went to sprawl carefully on her bed, perching him atop a pigmy puff pillow before removing her DS from her pocket. She switched it on and bypassed the game video for the start menu while she fished absentmindedly for her stylus.

"What is that device?" Loki asked curiously.

"A Nintendo DSi . You play games on it as well as using a few other features. This one is called Pokémon. It's rather addicting. You can play for months or years, then have it sitting around getting dusty for a period of what we call remission, until the bug hits you again and you're more obsessed than before. Because you see, you never stop being obsessed. It just gets less noticeable. And sometimes you never have a remission. There's a big franchise and a tv series..."

She explained the concept, progression, world, and series to him, and opened her saved file. At first he merely watched with mild interest, but soon he steadily crept forward until, hours later, he was playing himself while she was sitting back like a back seat driver, albeit more effective and less annoying, as she gave him advice. She still had to hold it, but she had scooted back with pillows and the headboard of her bed supporting her back, the DS propped up by a pillow in her lap and Loki sitting beside of it on the pillow touching the screen, leaving her to operate the buttons. It was an agreeable partnership. She had explained type match-ups and level differences all ready, and he tended to be a very skilled trainer.

"He's going to faint," Lucy warned, somewhat alarmed, speaking about her Chimchar.

"He's not," Loki replied calmly, a determined edge to his voice. The Onix they were facing uttered a cry of protest and fainted as he spoke. Smugly, he added, "I believe I have won you your gym badge."

"Prat," Lucy muttered. They moved into the next town. To say Loki was competitive would have been an understatement. It got to the point that he slapped her hands if she tried interfering. Scowling, she let him play on.

"Did he really think he could defeat me?" Loki murmured.

"Mmm," Lucy mumbled. Her head drooped slightly, her hand going limp for a minute before coming back up. Loki's little hands paused and he looked back at her.

"You're tiring," he noted. Lucy blinked tiredly at him. She yawned.

"It's been a long day and you're supposed to rest your eyes anyway. We can play more tomorrow. Do you remember how to save?"

Scowling, Loki saved the file, holding the power button in until the screen went blank. Lucy rubbed her eyes groggily, placing the DS safely on her night-table and attaching the charger. The orange light flickered on. She eyed Loki.

"I need to take a bath of my own."

He arched an eyebrow. "And? I'm telling you now that I most certainly will not be going in with you."

Lucy spluttered, reddening. "I would hope not! Just...don't mess around, all right?"

She grabbed up her belongings, dashing out but making sure the door was closed firmly. Loki sat down, bored without the girl to entertain him. He paced across the bed, perusing her bookshelf from the post closest to that section. He wondered vaguely if his magic had changed much before he tried summoning a book of poetry. To his delight and relief, it had not, and the book floated onto the bed nicely.

He fumbled with the cover edge, finally lifting it enough to push it open. He read until she returned, her hair sleek with moisture and braided into one long plait over her left shoulder. He waved his hand, turning the page. She stopped short. Loki looked up. He had moved a pillow up so that he could perch on the edge, his feet dangling over the page.

"Are you going to stand there all night? I know you aren't dull, girl."

"Lucy," she corrected quietly. "You're magic too?" She asked. Loki tilted his head to the side. "Too?"

"Yeah, as in also or as we-"

"I know what you meant, I'm not daft," he snapped. He hopped down from the pillow, advancing across the comforter.

"Are you telling me that you have magic, _Lucy_?"

Lucy bit her lip. "I'm not supposed to talk about it."

Loki stopped just short of the edge. "Do your parents not appreciate it?" He asked quietly. Lucy blinked, face scrunching confusedly.

"Well, yes. They're both magic, too, my entire family is. But our society is separate from the Muggles-that is, non-magic folk without a drop of magic to be found in their blood. But it's supposed to be a secret. Our world has laws, and that's one of them. Unless we fall in love with Muggles or have friends or family in our life that we trust, or they would inevitably be exposed, we can never tell."

"Magic is valued here?" Loki asked sharply. Lucy shrugged.

"By some. By our world it is. Some Muggles like it, some respect it, some fear it, and some hate it. And in turn, feelings vary about the non-magical among us."

"You said both of your parents...you mean that your father and brothers...they aren't...demeaned...for their usage?"

Lucy shook her head no. "Our world isn't too sexist. It's blood purity that some concern themselves with, how many generations of magic and such. All of my siblings and I are pureblood, mom and her family are, but dad is a half-blood because his mom was a pureblood witch that married a Muggle. Uncle Fabio did too-marry a Muggle that is."

Lucy didn't understand the emotions that flitted across Loki's face. Finally, he gestured at the book and said, "Send that back to the shelf, then. Or try to close it."

"I'm sorry, I can't," Lucy said quickly, fidgeting and tugging on the end of her braid. Loki swept his arms wide, hands facing upward.

"Why ever not?"

Lucy sat on the bed, drawing her knees up to her chest and laying her head on them, turned to the side to face him.

"We're not sent off to be properly trained until we're eleven. Mom and dad teach me things, and so do my siblings, when they've all time, but..."

Loki paced towards her, hands behind his back. "Try," he instructed.

Lucy's eyes widened, then switched to the book. Her face scrunched up in concentration, her eyes squeezing shut for a fraction of a second. The book twitched, and with a lurch fell off of the bed, falling on its spine.

"Well, I suppose actually moving it counts for something," Loki mused. "Try again."

Lucy did try. She tried five more times in succession. On the sixth, the book pages stirred, and with a resounding smack, the cover flipped shut. She allowed herself a small smile of triumph, which quickly fell to uncertainty when Loki said, "Now put it back on the shelf."

By then, Lucy had a small pain just behind her eyes, her head throbbing. She sat back against her pillows, cradling it between her hands.

"I'm not like you, Loki" she said quietly. "We use wands and-"

"Then all it is is a conduit. I can teach you how to manipulate your greatest ally by your will alone. You will learn how-because I will teach you how."

Lucy peeked up at him through her fingers. "But what if I don't want to be like you? Using it that way corrupted you, didn't it?"

Loki paced closer. "No, it didn't. In magic, ~**there is no good or evil, only power, and those too weak to take it. ~** I can teach you, unworthy though you are-if you wish, that is."

Lucy snorted. "Unworthy? Well aren't you a charmer."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Mortal, do not tarry over my words. You will either accept my offer or decline."

Lucy shifted upward, picking him up by the waist.

"What are you-put me _down_," Loki snarled, clearly not appreciating being man-handled.

"You should be nicer to me," Lucy said solemnly, "since you're at _my_ mercy."

Loki stopped struggling and tilted his head to the side. "What would you know of mercy?"

Lucy sat back against the headboard again, her knees drawn upward but not to her chest. She set him gently on her left knee.

"My father always says it was a mercy that my mother found him. He says she was **~a beautiful woman that loved a very ugly man, really, really, loved him.** Aunt Evie says they gave each other something to live for."

"Would you care to explain?" Loki inquired. Lucy glanced sharply at him, staring at him, biting her lip the way she had when she had accidentally spoken to him about magic.

"Why should I tell you all of my secrets?"

"Who else have you to tell?" Loki retorted.

"Well, I'm not telling!" She sniffed. "You think you're so clever! I can't stand it."

He made an irritated noise in his throat and dug his nails into her knee. She yelped and swatted at him. He went flying across the room, hitting one of her bookcases and dropping to the floor unconscious. Lucy sat startled for a second, then leapt up, scrambling over to where his small form lay crumpled. She crouched on her heels, gingerly picking him up. His head lolled. Lucy, whimpering, cradled him close to her chest and retreated to her bed, where she placed him gently on one of her spare pillows, curling around it and pressing her cheek close to his head. She could just feel his breath filtering out from him. She hoped she hadn't broken anything of his. Making sure she wouldn't roll over and smother him, Lucy settled in and allowed her drooping eyelids to flutter closed in slumber.

Words kept echoing through Loki's throbbing skull, as he lay trapped half in and half out of consciousness while his body healed and rested.

_*"'Your punishment, Loki Laufeyson," Odin had said gravely, with Frigga standing to the side, her son in chains before the throne, "is to be cast out to Midgard, the one you so wished to conquer;however, you will lose your status, title, and stature. You will keep your magic, but not your form-not until you are worthy, until you have proven yourself repentant. Your penance, then, shall be banishment on Midgard, reduced much in size so that you will hopefully be humbled by your physically lower position. You will have to overcome a larger world, Loki, and yourself. You live because Lady Queen Frigga wishes it. But now I see before me no son of mine. Prove me wrong. Be warned, though, that it will not be the same. Trust must be earned."_

_"Spare me your mercy," Loki sneered. Odin gazed coldly down at him, pointing Gungnir at him. The chains fell away but the room shrank around him. Frigga stepped down from the dais, picked him up, and took him to the Bifrost. _

_"Do not make my king regret this," Frigga cautioned, hugging him close to her before she set Loki down. "Nor do I advise you breaking my heart again. I cannot bear much more, and you will not have another chance. He will only listen to my pleading so many times. He does not forgive or forget so easily, or see his own faults."_

_She rose, falling into position behind Heimdall, who sank his sword into the slot, and Loki could feel himself being thrown downward, away from where he had grown up.'*_

He remembered vaguely waking up underneath the trees. He had been in some wood, about to be eaten when, suddenly, a child's scolding voice could be heard. Rocks were thrown, and the animal, whatever it was, fled. He remembered seeing Lucy's face for the first time, bending over him, her breath quickening, her eyes widening-and then the recognition and disbelief. And something that had surprised him. Compassion. She had lifted him carefully, her fingers supportive and shaping around him to scoop him up as gingerly as she could. He recalled her face coming down close to him, looking him over from head to toe, the crease between her eyes. He remembered the wall of green and brown rushing by as she ran, the color of the clear, bright, morning sky, the slam of her back door and the pounding of her feet as she raced to her room. It had not escaped him how she had carefully peeled off his then minuscule armor, wiping him off as best she could without stripping him completely naked, tenderly combing his hair back, redressing him in soft, small clothes she had to rummage for somewhere out of his slitted line of sight. He remembered not saying a word or uttering a protest because for once, it felt good to lay back and let someone care for him, if only temporarily. He remembered her opening his mouth and dripping water in with an eyedropper, and his swallowing. He recalled the small details, like the gentleness of her soft hands and her concern. She was so achingly like Frigga in those actions, even though he knew she knew what he had done-probably to some of those she knew-and exactly who he was. Yet she had sheltered him, made him comfortable.

He finally achieved proper sleep, planning to punish her for throwing him against the wall. He had decided, though, that he would most definitely not kill her.

* * *

**All Original Material ©2013 peridotpasasges (And all other aliases and associated legal names) **

**All rights reserved. All rights reserved in respects to all owners of recognizable material or otherwise.**

**#Avengers(Loki) #Harry-Potter-&-Hetalia(Lucy) #Fanfiction-#Cross-over #prompt #Pocket-sized #sassy-fluff #Katia #SeverusSnape #Nico #doll-clothes #doll-houses-&-Furniture #Hi-Mom #Blessed-Down-There #Bath #Shrinking-Dad's-Undies #(fantabuous)high-bum(s) #hips #humor #addiction #little-girl #niña #god-of-mischief-&-fire #no-sparkles #green-looks-good-on-you #if-looks-could-kill #mercy #humanity #peridotpassages #sorry-about-all-da-hashtags **


	2. A Fondness

**By the Grace of Her Humanity **

* * *

_Ch.2: A Fondness _

It was hunger that awoke Lucy, and then the realization that she had neglected to feed Loki after she had promised him food. He had said nothing, which confused her slightly. His breath flowed easily against her cheek. She cracked one eye open, peering at him. He had rolled onto his side, facing her and looking thoughtful even in slumber. Not peaceful though. She suspected nothing gave him peace. Nor did innocence steal over him in his unconscious state as it did for some. He owned his sins even in his state of being unawares.

She hated to disrupt his rest, but she knew he had to eat, and probably relieve himself. She blushed at the thought, carefully lifting her hand to prod him awake. Instead of opening his eyes, his hands wrapped around her hand, pulling it close and snuggling against it. Lucy had to stifle a giggle. It was priceless, really, and she wished that she could take a picture. Not many people could boast that the shrunken god of mischief and fire had unwittingly cuddled with their hand.

Lucy nibbled on her bottom lip for a moment, deciding she would just settle in again and wait for him to release her. After a while, she dozed, drawing her hand back to her. In their unconscious state, Loki curled towards her, snuggling against her neck, completely blanketed by her hand.

Loki's eyes fluttered open. The sight of soft, black, undulating waves met his gaze. He blinked uncertainly. Hair. It was hair, he realized, curly jet black hair, and the warmth his face and hands were pressing against from either side, he realized, were the soft, exposed skin of a throat and a hand encompassing him, shielding him. Loki was speechless. He had become cuddled protectively against Lucy, her hand limp. He released his hold of her fingers, stretching slightly. She was oddly comforting. He pushed away any doubts about lacking tenderness, instead focusing on how to disentangle himself without waking her. To his chagrin, however, she made a little sound, her arm circling her head. He cursed as she shifted and settled once more. He was trapped. He could not wriggle away without her noticing, for he would have to clamber over her arm, or crawl closer and scale her shoulder, neither of which he relished.

Lucy, however, was far out of reach, having been called astrally by someone very familiar to Loki.

* * *

Lucy opened her eyes. The room she was in was tall, and vaulted, gold and finery glimmering everywhere and torchlight flickering against ancient stone. It reminded her of Hogwarts, in a sense, because often times she would stay with her parents during the school year, as they both still taught there. This place had an alien feel, though, that made Lucy shiver, hugging herself. She could feel eyes on her, so she turned, trying to find the source, and stumbled backward. A woman stood behind her, smiling. Her blue eyes were warm and gentle, and her blonde hair fell about her shoulders.

"Who are you? Where am I?" Lucy exclaimed, scrambling away. The woman held her hand up calmly.

"I will not harm you, child. I am Frigga, Queen of Asgard."

Lucy stopped abruptly. "Frigga? Asgard?" She took a tentative step towards the woman. "You're Loki's mother, aren't you?"

Sadness entreated upon the woman. "I am," she replied, bowing her head and clasping her hands just below her breasts, "Though he may say otherwise. I raised him, I care for him. He is my son as much as Thor is."

"That's what mom says about Enrique," Lucy said, relaxing slightly and going to sit on one of the plush chairs in the vast room. A fire crackled in the grate. Lucy stared into it.

"My son is with you yet, isn't he?" Frigga asked, walking to the mantle and turning her head to stare at Lucy. Lucy nodded hesitantly after a moment. "How did you know?"

"We have ways of seeing things," Frigga replied softly. She walked over to Lucy, who looked up at her warily at her as she bent down to her level. Frigga placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you for taking care of him," the Queen whispered, "Not many would. You sheltered him even knowing what you know of him. And I thank you for that. Not everyone has such purity of heart, or would so willingly offer asylum, especially without requiring a price."

Lucy didn't know quite what to say. "He's lonely, isn't he?" She asked suddenly. "I can tell. When he smiles sometimes, it isn't real. I can tell that, too. It's after I've said something I didn't know was mean. He just stops, and then he flashes that fake smile."

Frigga gave her a heartbreaking smile. "He probably will not appreciate the perceptiveness of children during his stay with you."

Lucy swung her feet a bit, careful not to hit the woman kneeling by her. "He's a sad little man with a lot of problems inside and out and absolutely no peace," she noted bluntly. To her surprise, Frigga laughed lightly, patting her leg as she stood. She offered Lucy her hand, and when the young witch took it, she pulled her onto her feet.

"You haven't told him any of this, have you?"

Lucy followed Frigga as she crossed the room to a window overlooking a garden. Twilight had fallen outside. Lucy shook her head in response. The two of them stared out, seeing different things.

"And do you pity him?" Frigga asked quietly. Lucy paused, trying to discern the answer. She wanted to be sure of herself and mean it. Face scrunching, she said, "No, I don't think I do, nor that I should."

Frigga's lips twitched, and she chuckled softly. "That is something he will appreciate. Tell me, what made you behave so-what made you save him?"

Lucy but her lip. "I wish I could tell you, really-" she shrugged -"but it wasn't out of pity. I _wanted_ to. I just knew I _had_ to. But that doesn't make any sense-except I would have felt horrible if I hadn't, and I couldn't let someone suffer when I knew I could do something about it."

Frigga turned to her, taking her chin in hand. Her eyes roved over Lucy's face, searching for something. Whatever she saw pleased her, her eyes staring down into Lucy's. "You did this out of the kindness of your heart, for his sake and not yours-I can see that now. Many people-and that includes children-are cruel and selfish, and cannot see past themselves. You are very different. You have in you one of the best aspects a Midgardian may possess-humanity. You have in you great humanity."

"Um...thank you, I think," Lucy said uncertainly. Frigga lowered her hand.

"We will be seeing each other again."

She smiled, and Lucy returned the expression after a moment. She could feel her eyelids drooping, and then they closed.

* * *

Loki was relieved when Lucy's arm moved ever so slightly, enough to allow him to crawl free from her. He tensed. A presence was in the room, one he recognized.

"You have a fondness for her, don't you?"

He sat back on the pillow, his bare feet sticking out over the edge, to stare at his mother. He laughed humorlessly.

"What could possibly impart upon you such a notion?"

Frigga sat on the edge of the bed, opposite of where Lucy's feet were splayed.

"As always, you are perceptive of others, but not of yourself," she sighed. He leaned towards her.

"And what could you mean by that?"

Frigga peered down at him thoughtfully, her eyes switching to Lucy, who still slept peacefully.

"She is a curiosity, is she not?"

"She has magic," was his only reply.

"You want me to believe that you have formed no attachment and that she is mere entertainment? Even now, you are afraid I have come to take you away from here to be planted somewhere else. I have merely come to visit my son."

Loki shut his mouth fast. Was he growing fond of her? Could he garner affection for some mortal child who undoubtedly merely took pity on him? He was not apt to acknowledge fondness, or interest beyond mere curiosity. The truth was, the girl was intriguing, and he was not sure of much beyond that. She had magic, yes (he found himself almost wishing Asgard had had the same attitudes toward magic), and a certain flare to her. She did not fear him as he wished her to, and continuous threats did nothing for impressing her. He would never admit he was lonely in the slightest, but a part of him squirmed under the uncomfortable knowledge that she knew, just by looking at him. He always came back to his belief that he needed no one. Why should he need the very wretched world that set such high expectations for him, gave him no opportunities, and wished to destroy him because of the monstrosity they perceived him as, aside from never measuring up to half of Thor's mighty shadow? He met Frigga's gaze, undaunted.

"She means nothing to me."

Sadness fell over Frigga like an unholy shawl. "Oh, Loki," she murmured, "still blind to your own inner workings and clinging to nonsensical notions. When will you realize-"

She broke off as Lucy stretched and groaned groggily, her eyes flickering behind their lids.

"She will awaken soon. I will see you, and of course you may call if you need me."

She prepared to stand. He lunged forward unexpectedly, but passed directly through her fingers. Smiling sadly, she disappeared just as Lucy arched her back and opened her eyes.

Lucy blinked lazily, panic seeping into her gaze when she did not immediately see or feel Loki. He watched her curiously, tilting his head. Had she already become attached to him, then? Did she take each charge of hers so seriously? He watched the relief flash across her features when he spoke, saying, "I am here, Lucy."

Her eyes darted downward, locking onto him. Very carefully, she picked him up and held him cupped in both hands, surprised when he offered no protest. She grimaced, noticing a bruise on his cheek where her hand had struck the night before.

"I didn't mean to hurt you. I shouldn't have struck you."

"No, you shouldn't have," he said, the soles of his tiny feet tickling her palms as he drew his knees closer to his chest. They stared at each other. She drew her knees up as well, in the circle of her arms.

"Do you forgive me for it?" She asked softly. Loki blinked. No one apologized to him. No one, not even Frigga. They all made excuses, or proclaimed their reasons or justifications, but no one apologized, no one ever felt guilty, merely pity, which he loathed above their hatred for him. It was strange to ponder, her sincerity and lack of contempt. He still wasn't sure what to make of her. She was a constant in that she was so very full of surprises. She dredged up emotions best left buried in his opinion. He felt that they could have been close if she had grown up with him when he was young and vulnerable and friendless, that they could have learned together and done tricks together and laughed in secret corners. He was haltingly realizing that if he had ever desired a friend or companion, he would have wished for someone like Lucy. If he did that sort of thing, which he didn't. Damn her. He had already released his grudge and forgiven her. He scowled, and the girl's brow creased, not knowing that Loki frowned at himself.

She stretched her thumb upward, lightly touching his uninjured cheek.

"Do you forgive me?" She pressed.

"Should I?" He asked instead of replying.

"It's up to you," Lucy whispered, "But if it's all the same to you, I hope you do. I really didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't much like it either."

Loki pressed his lips together, gazing thoughtfully at the lines of her palm. She really meant him no harm. Why, he thought, should he alleviate her suffering, sooth her torment, when he could do nothing great for his own? But he could not do that to Lucy, even having just met her less than half a fortnight before. She was too much like Frigga, and he never found great pleasure in hurting Frigga.

"If it means so much to you, I may take it into consideration," he shrugged neutrally, "but the acceptance of my tutelage would have great effect in swaying me."

Lucy bit her cheek and narrowed her eyes, but nodded. It piqued his interests that she could discern all was not well with the agreement. She was too young to know she was being manipulated, but old enough and smart enough to know he had just snuck something past her. He also knew that even if she did understand, her desperation to make amends would drive her to agree regardless. Her thumb continued to absentmindedly caress the side of his face, and he closed his eyes, allowing himself to relax a moment as she gently stroked his hair. She began humming softly. Loki cracked his eyes at that.

"What on earth do you think you're doing?"

The humming stopped. "Don't you feel better?" Lucy asked. He almost scowled, but stopped himself.

"I am quite recovered, yes."

Lucy smiled, and he found it to not be unwanted. The witchling uncurled herself and stretched her legs out before her, swinging them over the side of the bed and standing. She placed Loki on her shoulder to hang on, whereupon he tangled his hands in a few strands of wild curls for balance as he sat, holding them like reins.

"Let's go scavenge some food, shall we?" Lucy said brightly, sliding into her slippers and housecoat.

"Would it not be best for you to wait for your family?" Loki asked as Lucy slipped into the hallway and padded down the dark carpeted hall. Loki could feel her shoulder undulate beneath him when she shrugged.

"When mom and dad go out on dates, they stay out late and don't always come home in the same night, and when they do, they're up late anyway and end up sleeping in. It's not like I'm unsupervised. My siblings are all old enough to take care of themselves and me, and aside from that, we have a house-elf-a free one."

"What is a house-elf?" Loki asked.

Once they reached the kitchen, she sat him on the counter and pulled herself up beside of him, watching their feet swing.

"Now will you tell me?" He persisted. Lucy cast him a sidelong glance, and then motioned for him to hide.

"Columbine," Lucy called softly. There came a pop, and a three foot tall, thin, skinny creature appeared, with large floppy ears, and a button nose. She wore a little blue-grey dress that matched her huge eyes.

"Yes, miss?" She squeaked.

"Would you mind fixing me something for breakfast, please?"

Columbine squealed happily and set to work.

"Columbine will fix miss Lucy's favorite!"

"She is your servant?" Loki suddenly hissed in her ear. Lucy had to keep herself from yelping or falling off of the counter. Loki had gotten onto her shoulder again without her noticing, peering through her hair at Columbine as the elf bustled about. Lucy nodded quickly while her back was turned, but then held her hand out and turned it from side to side. Loki remained silent until she had a plate to take back to her room. She sat cross-legged on her rumpled sheets, a tray under her plate, the door firmly closed and Loki by her elbow. His eyebrow rose.

"What is all of that?"

"Chorizo con huevos on a tortilla, re-fried beans, fried spice rice, fried potatoes, banana peppers, and salsa on the side; and she's making churos for desert," Lucy told him, pointing out each item as she named it, aside from the missing churos.

"I do not recognize this meal," Loki noted.

"If you don't like it, I can always get you something else later," Lucy told Loki, picking up her cup and taking a sip of tea. He would have snapped at her, but his stomach protested violently, so he consented, watching as she put smaller portions of everything to the side for him. They ate in silence.

Columbine came to take her dishes away, and told her quite cheerfully that the churos would be done in a bit, if she fancied having one. Lucy said she would like one very much, and they waited for the goods to finish. As soon as she was gone with the empty plate they had been on (Lucy and Loki had eaten three between them, with cinnamon stuck to their chins), Lucy placed her pint-sized charge on her shoulder and skipped to the bath to brush her teeth and wash her face and hands. Once back in her room, Lucy shimmied behind her partition with her leggings, knee-shirt, socks, and sneakers.

"Your clothes are in the little wardrobe!" She called, her pajamas appearing above the top of the screen as she laid them over it.

Scowling, he sorted through the outfits she had forced him into that he had not immediately hated. When he emerged, she was brushing out her hair before her mirror.

"We always have someone dropping in, so I've learned not to be caught unawares and in my night clothes since they might try changing me to their liking," Lucy explained, seeing his expression when she turned. She shrugged. "It happens when you're the baby of the family and friends circle."

She had barely finished speaking when a knock came at her door, a male child's voice calling from the other side excitedly, "Lucy, are you in there?"

Lucy swooped down and brought him up in her hand to eye-level.

"That's Pippin," she murmured. "I'll have to hide you. Stay in my hair."

He didn't have room to argue as she shoved him underneath a swath of curls, patting them into place before standing aside and swinging her room door open. Pippin, who had been leaning against the door, tumbled in at her feet. Loki, forced to clutch the side of her neck and various strands of hair, peered out at the boy. Pippin, as it turned out, was short for his age, and incredibly pale, with strawberry-blond hair so curly it put Shirley Temple to shame, and dimples. He upturned his face sheepishly to Lucy, who granted him an affectionate smile.

"Hi, Pippin," Lucy said sweetly, offering him a hand to help him up, "Anxious to see me?"

The boy blushed, nodding. Lucy, like everyone else, couldn't help but find him precious no matter how much he aged.

"What's that?" Pippin asked suddenly, staring intently at her shoulder.

"What's what?" Lucy asked innocently, staring around and hoping to the higher powers that be that Loki had hidden himself. Pippin's face scrunched in confusion that he shrugged off.

"I thought I saw something."

Lucy brushed it off light-heartedly. "So what did you want?" she asked. Pippin pouted. "You mean I can't just swing by and say hi?"

"Pfft. You've spoken."

Pippin blushed again. "Well...we could go to the park..."

Lucy shrugged. "Sure, just give me a minute, k? To wait outside."

Pippin blinked and complied. Lucy waited until he had gone before she gently extricated Loki and lowered him onto the balcony of her dollhouse.

"You have free reign of anything, and I'll keep my door shut tight. If you're hungry, I have chocolate in my night table. I won't be gone all day."

The little twerp _lied_. She was gone for hours, and though Loki was not hungry he was lonely and irritated that she had abandoned him, even it he would rather die than admit it, especially to her.

Hours later, when Lucy returned, closing her room door, Loki spoke for the first time in hours.

"Will this be a regular occurrence?"

Lucy paused in her yawning and stretching. "What?"

"Spending time with that other child," he said distastefully.

"Why, are you jealous?" Lucy said, not meaning it, stony silence meeting her question. She searched around her room until she found him, pulling him away at arm's length. His jaw was clenching and unclenching.

"You want to play on my DS while I take a nap?" she asked after a moment of sucking on her front teeth thoughtfully.

"No," he hissed shortly. Lucy sighed. "I'm sorry. I'll take you next time it you wish."

"No," he snapped, and Lucy shut her mouth.

"I'm sorry that you're hurting so much. But I have people I like to spend time with, and I can't always be around. The only thing would be to take you with me, and that wouldn't be fair to you. But it's not fair to them if I forget them and dance around with you all day to your heart's content. You have to learn how to share."

"You have no right to dictate what I do-or to judge me," he spat. Lucy frowned tiredly.

"I'm not. I'm telling you-as a friend-what's good for you."

Loki stopped scowling, instead unconsciously allowing the surprise stealing over him to show. "A friend?"

Lucy blinked. "...well...yes. Aren't we? Can't we be?"

He tilted his head to the side, asking to consider. After a pause, he said carelessly, "No, we are not."

Lucy blinked again, rapidly, stared at him long and hard. Her jaw clenched, she worried her lip, swallowing. Loki did not expect the quaver he next heard when she spoke.

"Well...that's fine. I just thought...never mind. It doesn't matter anymore. But if all you're going to do is push people away and lash out, you're going to be stuck like this, here, with no one you know and people you hate, for a _very _long time. Now you're friendless and alone, just like you wanted. I hope you're happy. Because you're going to regret those kinds of decisions. You're going to have an empty heart because you didn't want to know the one person who wanted to know you, the real you. And now we're both alone together."

After her solemn deliverance, she set him down quietly, turned the TV up, left her DS within reach, and laid down clutching a stuffed rabbit facing away from him. He tried to ignore it, but even with her animal covering her face, he knew she was crying-the fake fur and stuffing did nothing to stifle her tears. Loki closed his eyes resignedly, sitting down with his back to a pillow, and put his head in his hands. She was like that for the next week, not weeping, but depressed, mopey, and unusually quiet. She had not been any different to him otherwise, though, had not been unusually cruel.

"You have wounded her."

He lifted his head to find Frigga present once more. On the other side of the room, Lucy continued sleeping, unaware of their conversation.

"It is not my fault she is weak," he said dismissively. Creases appeared around Frigga's eyes.

"Is that what you think, that she weeps out of weakness? It seems that your perception has failed you once more. She weeps for similar reasons that you did."

He stood angrily. "I did _not _weep."

"Not visibly, no. But you wept bitterly inside. You were alone, and so is she. You were a shining hope for her, and she bonded to you rather quickly."

"She was foolish," he spat. Frigga knelt in front of him. He looked up at her. "Don't give me one of your speeches, or beg me to be _nice_. I am anything but."

Frigga sighed, glancing over at Lucy. "She is as friendless as you are and were, in a manner of speaking."

He opened his mouth angrily, but Frigga implored him with her eyes, and he did what he rarely ever would-he listened. "She has what you lacked with siblings, I suppose, but all of her siblings are older than she: the oldest are ten years older, and the youngest five, and the mortal child you saw earlier is only her friend because their parents are friends, and have been since long before she-or her siblings, for that matter-were born. If their mothers had not met, neither would they. She is not old enough yet to attend their schools, no other magical children live nearby, and mutants would not leave concealment-they are as threatened and feared as magic by Muggles, or Mundanes as some call them. The others of her kind are either too young or too old. She has no one she has befriended on her own merits, and she fears having to live up to standards others may have set for her predecessors. That is all I can impart upon you, but I pray it is sufficient."

"What another lengthy, wasted speech attempting to stir my heart."

Oh, he pretended not to care, or to notice, but the truth was that she was right- Lucy was achingly similar, although he would never admit such. In that past week, he had seen her withdrawing, becoming him.

"At least you admit you have one now," Frigga smiled wearily, and then she faded, sparing Lucy one last glance. Loki sat back down, watching the child's thin shoulders move with each breath. Lucy lay quietly for a time in a bedraggled and rumpled heap before she picked herself up with one final snort-cough, cleared her throat, blinked and began gathering some of her things. She had been napping.

"Where are you going?"

"Out." Lucy didn't pause as she stuffed a sketch pad, her DS, a book, a few drawing tools, headphones, and an iPod into a small messenger bag. Her voice was rough, but calm. "I need to be alone."

"Moth-Frigga told me about you."

"Did she?" Lucy said shortly. "I didn't think you and she talked very much since you can't even call her your mom."

"What I call her is none of your concern," he snapped. Lucy paused in her search for her tin of macaroons.

"I think it's only decent to. She's the only one who'll ever unconditionally love someone notoriously hard to love, and I think she really, really loves him. And I think that it doesn't matter who you're related to by blood so long as you have something like that. But you don't care what I think, do you?"

"Yes," he found himself saying softly, "I do."

Lucy paused uncertainly. "Prove it."

"You ask too much of me," he said haughtily. He fell silent.

"Come with me...to my place."

He tipped his head to the side. "I am not your friend. I will not play with you, I may or may not humor your whims-"

"Um, I just-I just need the company, actually," she whispered, pushing a curly dark lock behind her ear. She stared down at her trainers. "I'm lonely, and I know you are too."

"How dare you-"

"If I left you alone, and didn't bother, and never cared, you're saying it would make you happy?" Lucy said skeptically. "Because I think your hate it. You did last time. I thinks that's why you were mad at me. I didn't want that for you. So I'm asking you to please come with me. I have macaroons and poetry."

He seemed to consider. He hated giving in and agreeing, hated letting her know she had bit the head of the nail...but he also knew that a part of him he loathed basked in the attention, wanted nothing more than to _not _be left alone. What would he do when Thor no longer cared to stop him? He had to pull bigger stunts and longer, more drastic and sometimes desperate schemes, cons, and machinations to ensure involvement. He had probably already been forgotten by all save Frigga. But Lucy...she had never once forgotten him, even when he had been cruel to her. She had fed, clothed, and groomed him, run his baths and taken down books for him, all the while withholding her tears because she knew it did no good to cry-he wanted none of her '_weakness' _...nor her friendship, it seemed. And they were both alone together, just as she had predicted.

"I shall go with you to...'_your place'_, wherever it may be."

Lucy smiled for the first time since he had truly tried to break her by denying her what he had always wanted. She picked him up and held him close, but carefully, so she would not harm him. He would never vocalize the small truth that it felt nice to be cared about by someone that wasn't Frigga, but who resembled her in character so much that it hurt. She saw him. He had purposely hurt her, but still she sought his friendship. Because she knew they both needed it.

For the first time in a long while, he felt at ease and content.


	3. The Hiding Place

**By the Grace of Her Humanity**

* * *

**I apologize for any obvious errors, of which I hope someone will kindly and civilly point out. Please review. It brightens my day after I have slaved over each chapter. **

* * *

_Ch.3: The Hiding Place_

_**Hiding places there are innumerable, escape is only one, but possibilities of escape, again, are as many as hiding places.**_

_**-Franz Kafka**_

"When will we reach this place of yours?" Loki asked Lucy.

"Is that the royal way of saying _'Are we there yet'_?" she replied.

"In so many words," he agreed. She was walking through the woods behind her house, looking over her shoulder and around her.

"Afraid of being followed?"

"It's not just a secret. It's made so that I'm the only way to it. I have to show someone, not tell them, and they can't take anyone else to it, I have to if I want them there, too. It's where I can go if I need to be safe."

"Interesting...I've heard of such before, though I've no idea what to call it."

"It's called a _Shiloh_. It means _'The one to whom it belongs',_ but also _'peace, abundance.'_"

"How aptly named."

"Mm."

Just then, another girl came out of nowhere and ran smack into them, knocking Lucy down and landing partially on top of her.

"Loki where are you?" She called out in alarm, fearing either she or the other girl had crushed him.

"Here," he said churlishly, standing up and brushing himself off having been thrown about a foot, prepared to be rather nasty to their inconvenience.

"I'm so sorry, please don't hurt me!" The girl cried. Her face was tearstained, her clothes worse for wear. "They're after me," she said, "the mean people."

She was younger than Lucy, now that the young witch and her companion could more properly see her, and of dark-haired and dark-eyed descent. She gazed fearfully at them, imploring them.

"Where are they?" Lucy asked after a beat. The girl pointed. Lucy let her line of sight follow in that general direction.

"Come with me."

"What?" The girl said confusedly the same time Loki interjected angrily from the ground by Lucy's feet with a hiss of "She is not of our concern!"

The girl's eyes widened and she stumbled away from them, tripping herself backwards flat onto her back. Lucy glanced downward, met his gaze, and with a countenance and tone of no-nonsense, said quite firmly, "She needs help and we can give it to her. I say we help her."

"And where, pray, shall you take her? Shall you shove her into your pocket as you do me? She is not so easily concealed. Whoever pursues her will surely come after yo-us."

"I'll take her to the hiding place," Lucy retorted calmly without hesitating, then tilted her head contemplatively before shaking it and turning again to the girl, hand extended.

"Come with me," she offered again, then added, "and tell me what I should call you."

The girl stared at her hand, her eyes darting to a very cross, shrunken prince. Those fearful eyes refocused on Lucy.

"Kateri," she whispered, grasping hopefully onto the proffered hand. Lucy knelt to retrieve Loki, and once she had righted herself, she led them to her hiding place, not knowing what she got herself into.

...xxx...

* * *

They had not gotten far when the sounds of purist could be heard clearly behind them.

"Not a word," Lucy snapped. Two different sets of nails dug into her skin, one that of Kateri's hand in hers, gouging at her palm, and the other Loki's as he clung to her neck.

"I am so dead if dad finds out," Lucy mused oddly, picking up her pace. She seemed to begin to concentrate harder, and suddenly all three of them were going by blurry outlines of things much faster than normal, hitting some kind of oobleck-like barrier before arriving at the base of an enormous tree, much larger than others around it, with thick, upraised roots. Kateri pulled back.

"What was that?" She whispered. "Why didn't you tell me you were one too?"

"Yes, what was that, Lucy?" Loki echoed. Lucy licked her lips, not wanting to answer either one of them.

"One of what?" Lucy practically chirped instead, then switched to urging them onward. "It's not much further now. Come on."

Kateri stared at her hesitantly, and then she nodded once, looking back over her shoulder and gaining another spur of terror.

To the surprise of Kateri and Loki, the tree began thrashing violently.

"It's a Whomping Willow," Lucy answered their unspoken question.

"You have to immobilize it first. It's handy if intruders follow you."

"I'm guessing they don't know how to immobilize it?" Came a curious inquiry from by her ear.

"There's a place...hold on." She turned to Kateri. "Stay. Don't move, or else you'll get lost."

She darted forward, between the writhing limbs with the younger girl just out of their reach. A moment later, the tree stood straight and tall. She rushed back to Kateri, who stood pretty much petrified in every aspect barring the magical. Her eyes were round saucers.

Lucy grabbed her hand, crawled over a large root, pulled Kateri with her, and then knelt down by the sheltered side. There appeared to be a tunnel downward.

"Is it safe?" Kateri swallowed.

"It's mine," Lucy replied, and without another word, she entered.

She had visited the similar spot on Hogwarts grounds, loved it so much she wanted a Shiloh just like it. And there it stood, except the safe-house at the end was nothing like the Shrieking Shack. She released the hand she held, flopping down carefully on a comfortable chair inside. A tunnel lead off of the room from the far side, leading upward, and another, more level one, branched off from the right. It was cozy inside, with rugs covering the floor. She watched idly as Kateri inspected the place. The girl jumped, yelped, and startled when Loki, who had slid down and now perched on the chair arm, asked abruptly, "So tell us-from whom or what do you run and why?"

Kateri sat down on a beanbag chair, drawing her knees up close to her chest. "You're not a mutant, are you?" She said quietly.

"No," Lucy shook her head. "Neither of us is...But we aren't Mundane, either."

Lucy's gaze softened, kinder and even more concerned than before.

"What do you do?" She asked after a moment. Kateri opened her eyes, having closed them momentarily.

"Change shape. Be anything."

Lucy nodded. "Are you sure the people after you meant to hurt you?"

Kateri shivered. "They were all dressed funny. They looked like government people. Some of them had lab coats, and there was a van. They tried to give me that shot, but I turned into a porcupine. I got scared. I didn't know where I was. I wanted to turn into an animal, but I bought something else might eat me or fight me. I didn't want to be a tree because someone could cut me down...and you know how people treat trees..."

"You could have flown away," Loki replied pointedly. Kateri glowered at him. "They could get me down, stupid. I'm six and a half and I know that! It'd be like...like duck season or something, except there's no flock...only me."

She looked down. "My daddy used to go hunting."

"Well...you're safe with us," Lucy supplied before Loki could spit out something biting and hurtful. She was half apt to laugh. She knew no one had spoken to him like that. "I know people that can get you somewhere you belong, with people like you. Somewhere you'll be protected. A school. A family."

Kateri met her gaze. "But I want *my family." Her lip quivered. Lucy dropped into her seat beside of her, putting an arm around her and drawing her close to her.

"I know. But this is how it has to be now, unless they're like you."

The girl in her arms shook her head, and Lucy could feel sobs shuddering in Kateri's chest, vibrating against hers. It made her heart wrench and her stomach turn.

Loki watched her thoughtfully. She was so odd. So caring and kind. Again, she reminded him so painfully and achingly of Frigga that he felt physical agony with his anguish.

"Is there another way out?" He asked after watching them a moment, silent tears sliding down Kateri's face. Lucy lifted her head, meeting his eyes. "The tunnel across the room. It's by our other house. Can't you just-"

"What, snap my fingers to save the spare?" He snapped. "If she endangers yo-my safety, I promise you I will-"

"Let me contact mom. She doesn't mind."

Lucy sounded cold, clipped, and formal as she extricated a strange mirror from a case in her bag.

"This is not the time for-" his snarl died in his throat as he heard a voice. Coming from the mirror. Lucy spoke to it in rather calm Nation-Speak, and then replaced it in her bag. She didn't meet his stare again.

"She'll be waiting with Uncle Fabio, Aunt Cecilia, and Aunt Evie at our other house in twenty minutes at the most. Are either of you hungry? There's a pantry with snacks over there."

Kateri and Loki both nibbled on some sort of magical-world sweet, until a glowing, silvery Ocelot appeared in the room. Its mouth opened, and the voice of Lucy's mother, Katia Ortega, poured out in Nation-Speak. Lucy helped Kateri to her feet, scooping up Loki and tucking him into her cloak pocket, one she had taken off of a peg on the wall. Wordlessly, she took her charge's hand again, and led her from the room through the opposite tunnel, hoping it led toward a better life for her.

"Don't mention my friend, ok?" She whispered as an afterthought. She registered a squeeze to her hand. Assured, she carried onward.

...xxx...

* * *

"She is humble and forgiving," Frigga noted, watching with Heimdall.

"Very altruistic," he agreed. "And she has a certain strength about her. She reminds me of you, in a way."

Frigga gave a dry chuckled. "You flatter me."

They were silent for a moment. "She gave him quite a smack, didn't she?" He rumbled. Frigga laughed rather lightheartedly. "I daresay he deserved as much. He never has known how to deal with children, even as a child himself."

"I venture to say that his trial will be much longer than that of the one before him."

"I couldn't agree more. Well...patience is a virtue, after all."

...xxx...

When they emerged, issuing forth through a trap door sheltered by the arbor, Lucy strode quickly through the garden, the hot sun beating down mercilessly on them as they advanced towards the main house. There came a flurry of soft and nearly imperceptible sounds that heralded the arrival of her relatives. Kateri, given a fright, had released her hold on Lucy's hand, accidentally morphing into a mouse and then back into her own form, and stepped away a bit.

"Lucy, Luce baby are you all right?" Katia knelt and took Lucy by the shoulders, inspecting her before holding her close to her chest and kissing her hair.

"I'm fine, mom."

"This is the girl?" Evie cut in, all business. Katia and Lucy pulled away from each other, turning their gazes onto Kateri, and Cecilia and Fabio took the opportunity to embrace their niece. She locked onto Evie and began recounting what she knew of things.

"Ha manĝir kaz Kateri. Mimi vibüe..." From there, Lucy spun them the entire length of the encounter-minus her minuscule companion-, while Kateri stood uncomprehending. Fabio smiled kindly at her.

Through all of this, Loki, who knew his existence was a secret and that Lucy's family would most likely not be as understanding as Lucy herself, stayed nestled quietly, motionlessly, and contemplatively, hoping the dazed Kateri wouldn't mention him.

"Right," Cecelia said as soon as Lucy finished speaking. "We need to move quickly. She needs to get to the Professor's as soon as possible. Do you know..?"

"He's always at home. Come on." Katia urged.

"Wait...isn't someone taking Lucy home first?" Evie interjected protectively. "After all, we don't know if those people are still out there looking for this other girl."

"Of course," Katia almost snapped. "Are you accusing me of being a bad mother?"

"Of course not," Cecilia intervened, shooting Evie a warning glare. "Why would she?"

"Two children murdered and one rejected the first few attempts to have her take them in?" Evie arched a brow, "What a wonderful track record. You deserve an award, Kat, really."

"Sometimes you're a real-you know what, we are not having this conversation. I don't know why you brought this up-"

Evie broke in with a flare of heated words. "They aren't our *kind, and yet you are more willing to help them than your own! How many times before you took Enrique in, not a Mutant or a Mundane, but a Child of Magic, of your best friend!"

"Excuse me, but I didn't know you were quite so racist." Katia's tone was flat, controlled, and deadly. "And we both know I'm in a much better and healthier mental state now than then, especially since I'm not suffering from PTSD, depression, and heartbreaking grief...oh, and I haven't blacked out and killed anyone in a rage. I can't believe you haven't let this go. How long have you been waiting to say this to my face?"

"Oh, it only needed to be said after you started meddling in Mutant and Mundane affairs," Evie snapped. "I don't have a problem with them, but they don't help us, sometimes our own don't help each other, and you stretch out your hand *so eagerly."

"You know it isn't right and that you aren't being fair to her," Fabio cut in quietly, almost whispering. "She's done a lot, for everyone. Without her and her husband..."

"Save it. I never liked that demon spawn anyway."

Katia's eyes widened, snapping to Lucy, who had paled considerably, and stood trembling slightly. Her lips parted, and her tongue darted out nervously. Cecelia and Fabio scowled disapprovingly at Evie, who seemed to realize the girl was still there, and then they all, too, looked at Lucy. Loki had frozen, intensely interested.

"Oh...Lucy...err" Fabio awkwardly started. Katia appeared to be at a loss for words, and Cecelia glared disdainfully at Evita.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lucy asked shrilly. "Dad's not like granddad..."

"Didn't she ever tell you? Your father and all of your blood siblings...your awful excuse for a grandfather...they have demon blood."

Lucy stared at her, horrified. "Mom?" She choked.

"We meant to explain a few things to you," Katia acknowledged quietly, shooting a scathing expression at her older sister. She stretched a hand out to her, but Lucy backed away.

Evita continued.

"I'm just glad she doesn't have yours," Katia snapped, and quite out of nowhere, her wand appeared, pointed rather accurately at Evita.

"We used to be so close. What happened?"

"You put your nose and your heart in those other affairs, and you put them before us, people that should matter more." Evita spat.

"Too bad you're the only one that feels that way. And why attack her and not us? We work alongside her," Cecelia responded hotly.

"The mercy you show to others is reflected in mercy shown to you. You don't help anyone but yourself, Evita,...and you're also the one who's alone," Katia rejoined the schism. She cast an apologetic glance at her daughter, who seemed too confused for interjections.

"I can find my own way home, since you guys are so busy," she whispered, and then she was gone, dodging around the garden and sitting on a bench underneath an angel statue. She could still hear them, though, and see glimpses of them through the foliage.

"Dammit!" Katia swore. "Just go home, Evita. I don't know why you came."

"Frankly, I don't either." She stormed off, disappearing with a crack.

"I'll take Kateri," Fabio interrupted brusquely, and he led the nonplussed child away. Cecelia hugged Katia tightly, and then she followed after Fabio. Katia stood by herself a moment, and then she went to find her daughter.

...xxx...

Lucy had gotten up when the fight had broken off abruptly and sat hunched in one of the passages in the extensive network that riddled the walls of the Manor House and the below-grounds.

"I'm suffocating against your chest," came an irritated voice. Sighing, Lucy pulled out the minuscule Loki and set him on her knee.

"Sorry. I'm trying to deal with being literal demon spawn."

Something akin to sympathy flashed in his eyes, or so she thought, and his scowl fell.

"I, too, know the feeling," he said quietly.

"It's something you can't rip out or scrub clean," Lucy muttered. There came a mutual understanding between them then, and that, perhaps, cemented their companionship more than her kindness or his entertainment. They had each found a kindred spirits of sorts, but were still very, very different.

"I don't want to go home right now."

"Don't say that. Be thankful you have the luxury." While her wistful respiration had been born of a gentler hurt, his statement overflowed with bitterness. Both of them had a melancholia that, surprisingly, let itself be soothed by the other's presence. After all, no one liked feeling alone.

"Go home, Lucy. Talk...talk to your mother. You never know when you will last feel that tended embrace or see that gentle gaze...if you have a real mother, a mother that truly mothered you, in every sense of the word that matters, then you will find that no one will treat you just the same."

"I know," Lucy whispered in a breath-sigh of resignation. A smile lit her features. "Thank you. You're a good friend."

That made him laugh outright, causing her confusion.

"I'm afraid you're the only one who believes so."

"Well, I'll just have to believe enough for everyone," she said firmly, resolute in a way only children can be. He didn't know quite how to react or respond to that, and what she did next sent him hurtling into the territory of oh-shit-what-is-this-little-human-doing: She hugged him. Carefully, since he was so small, picking him up gently like one might an infant and holding him to her heart. He tensed, more shell-shocked than righteously indignant or repulsed, and not at all fearful.

No one hugged him-no one. But then again, no one befriended him, either.

Little Lucy seemed to be one to break all of the rules. He could get to like that. He, too, did the same.


End file.
